Parker poised, ‘Melo in limbo

The Carmelo Anthony Farewell Tour made it to the AT&T Center on Sunday night, and perhaps that was an upset. Certainly, those who had Jan. 16 in the “How long until ’Melo is out of Denver?” pool were disappointed.

In a way, so was Anthony.

“I get tired of answering the questions,” Anthony said after the Spurs walloped his soon-to-be former team 110-97. “But I live with it.”

In a Spurs jersey Sunday, zipping through what passed for the Denver defense was someone who in an alternate universe might have known the feeling.

Had Tony Parker not agreed to a contract extension in October, wouldn’t the same uncertainty have followed the Spurs point guard from NBA city to city?

“All those rumors, New York this and New York that,” Parker said, referring to the speculation that dogged him until he autographed his Spurs extension. “I can only imagine what Carmelo is going through.

“It’s tough for the whole team. It’s tough to get something going because you never know if the next day you’re going to be traded.”

The situations aren’t exactly the same. Anthony clearly wants out of Denver. If his continued refusal to do what Parker did — sign a contract extension with the team that drafted him — wasn’t evidence enough, Anthony seemed intent Sunday on providing more.

With his jersey already on the clearance racks back in Denver, and backroom machinations in the works that could have him and Nuggets point guard Chauncey Billups in New Jersey by week’s end, Anthony finished what might have been his final game with the Nuggets with 12 points. He was 5 of 17 — including three blown layups — and had four turnovers to go with about 11 mopey looks.

Parker, by contrast, never wanted to leave the Spurs. In October, he put his money where his mouth was by inking a four-year extension worth as much as $50 million.

The Spurs were certainly happy to still have him Sunday, when he poured in 30 points, made 11 of 15 field goals and — along with longtime backcourt mate Manu Ginobili — ignited the run that helped the Spurs recover from a 12-point deficit in the first half.

With the victory, the Spurs reached the halfway point of their season at 35-6, the best record in the NBA, a club record and tied for third-best midseason record ever. They also ran their home winning streak to 15 games, their longest since 2004-05.

“There’s no question they’re a special team,” Denver coach George Karl said of the Spurs, perhaps a bit enviously.

Karl’s team is special in a different way. Two seasons after challenging the Lakers in the Western Conference finals, the Nuggets (23-17) appear on the brink of self-destruction.

Spurs coach Gregg Popovich can think of few better captains for a ship in distress than Karl, a two-time cancer survivor.

“One of his strong suits is when things are going bad, he toughens up and figures out a way to keep everything together,” Popovich said. “If there’s some sort of disturbance going on or a situation that is difficult for most, he seems to shine in those situations.

“He’s done a great job this year, under the circumstances.”

The Nuggets had dealt well with their circumstances in the previous three games, beating Phoenix, Miami and Cleveland by an average of 30 points, with Anthony averaging 20.3. Sunday, the ’Melo drama finally caught up with them.

Or, perhaps, Denver just ran into a better team with its act together.

Trailing by 12 early in the second quarter, Spurs exploded on a 37-10 run over the final 9:15 of the second quarter, a spurt that included 19 consecutive points and 14 consecutive made baskets, to grab a 57-42 lead.

Ginobili had seven of his 18 points during that stretch, while Parker had 10, the pair of former All-Stars trading off flurries like virtuoso guitar players swapping solos.

By the time the Spurs were done, so were the Nuggets. For the game, and perhaps for the season.

By re-upping with the Spurs in October, Parker saved himself — and his team — this kind of drama. Sunday, he played with the swagger and confidence of a player assured in his future, and even knocked down back-to-back 3-pointers in the fourth quarter.